Lions general manager Martin Mayhew said at the NFL owners meetings this week that he “definitely would consider drafting a quarterback” to back up Matthew Stafford this year.

“The value in that is maybe you have your backup for the next three or four years,” Mayhew said. “Or, like some teams have done in the past, when you draft that quarterback and you develop him, then you can trade him for a draft choice. So that certainly is an option for us.”

The Lions typically carry three quarterbacks on their roster and have spent the past two seasons with the same trio: Stafford as starter, Hill as backup and Kellen Moore as third string.

Hill has played sparingly the last three years, attempting just 16 passes and appearing in four games. Moore, who signed with the Lions as an undrafted free agent two years ago, has yet to take an NFL snap and is entering the final season of his rookie contract.

Stafford’s place atop the depth chart is secure.

“Kellen has shown a lot of growth and improvement over the time that we've had him, but he hasn't gone out and actually done it in games, so that's the trade-off,” Mayhew said. “With a guy like Shaun Hill, you got him this year, but do you have him next year or how many more years is Shaun going to be able to play? Whereas you get a young guy, that’s your backup for the next three or four years.

“A lot of teams have used that backup quarterback position to draft and develop a guy you can eventually trade for a draft choice. So there’s a lot of different ways to go with that. We'll just keep aware of the situation and try to find the right fit.”

Asked whether he’d prefer a veteran or rookie backup, Mayhew, who hasn’t drafted a quarterback since taking Stafford first overall in 2009, said he’s “very open to any possibility.”

“We just need a player, a quality player, that can be our backup quarterback,” Mayhew said. “He can go in and function and perform well for us and help us win a game. And it could be a young guy, it could be a draft choice, it could be a veteran guy. But we want to find the right guy for that role.”